Fehmi Gökeş: Mosaic artist

 

While at school in Turkey I enjoyed art lessons enormously. Discovering for the first time the joy of colour, shape and what I could do with them is still with me.

 

Not knowing I had a talent for art I came to England in 1992 and by chance my wife, who trained as an artist, and my mother-in-law saw what was in me and encouraged me to make greetings cards. It didn’t take long to discover that my way of expressing myself is through mosaics.

 

I have been making mosaics since 1996 and have developed my own style by experimenting with different techniques and materials. I like making mosaics in relief rather than flat, and the grout is an integral part of each piece; not just to fill in the gaps. I like combining a variety of mosaic materials and less traditional ones such as wood.

 

I had a shop in Hastings for 5 years, which was also my studio. Talking with people who were enthusiastic about my work was rewarding, and getting commissions, which I have had from all over the world, is proof of their enthusiasm.

 

I moved to Norfolk in 2004 and now I work from home on commissions whilst continuing to explore the possibilities of new techniques through my own work.